Two Times Sam and Jack Got Stranded by Snow, and One Time They Didn't
by nymaeria
Summary: A little touch of snow just in time for Christmas; presented in three parts. SJ UST to RST. Originally written for the 2012 sj-everday Advent Calendar on livejournal.
1. Chapter 1

"Sir, do you think Daniel and Teal'c made it back to the gate?" Sam asked, her breath visible in the cold late afternoon air.

Jack paused his sifting through their supplies. "I'm sure they did, Captain."

Sam only nodded in response, her tongue pressed forward between her teeth in order to keep her CO from noticing how badly her teeth were chattering. She was still so new on SG1; she didn't want her CO to think she was a wimp. It was just a little chilly, anyway. Nothing she couldn't handle.

"Carter," Jack called out, tossing her a tightly-bound set of tent poles. "Start setting these up for us, will ya?" Sam caught the bundle and then set to work fitting together the pole-segments. Jack finished organizing their supplies and began working on the fire. Before setting up camp, they'd managed to collect a small amount of wood. Not enough to keep them toasty, but enough to help them make it through the night. With any luck, Daniel and Teal'c would be back tomorrow morning with back up and more supplies.

Sam finished stringing the poles through the light tent fabric and pinning the poles in place. The ground was frozen and she briefly worked up a sweat struggling to get them in worked into the cold, hard soil. "That should do it." Sam stood up and wiped the dirt and ice off her fingers, realizing as she did so that she was beginning to lose feeling in them. She shook her hands and then buried them in the pockets of her too-light jacket.

"C'mere, Carter." Jack waved her over to the fire. "We might as well take advantage of the fire while it lasts." Jack held up the two MREs he'd retrieved from their packs. Sam walked around the tent and gratefully joined him by the fire he'd built just near the front opening. As Sam reached over to choose her meal, a massive shiver rolled through her body. The heat she'd worked up from struggling with the tent spikes was wearing off as she felt the cold wind at her back, cutting through the neckline of her jacket.

Jack saw Carter's hands trembling as she reached for the food. He leaned back and eyed his second in command. "You okay, Carter?" He'd noticed that this new team member of his never seemed to complain.

Sam looked up, surprised. "Oh, yes, Sir, I'm fine."

Jack nodded his acceptance, but inwardly, he sighed. Her reticence to admit to any problems seemed strange to him and in contrast to every other team he'd worked with. Even when they'd stayed in good humor about it, his old teammates had never been shy to express their discontent. Especially Kawalski, thought Jack with a smile. Even though he'd be joking about it, he'd still be whining loudly if he'd had to make camp in this bitter cold. The fact that Captain Carter never uttered a word of complaint ironically made her more of a liability in the field, not less. Because she kept things to herself, presumably out of some misguided desire to impress upon him how tough she was, he had to keep a close eye on her and monitor her for problems. It was more work for him and frankly a little annoying. He wished she'd just relax a bit and give him more information to work with. When they'd met, he'd told her he didn't have a problem with women, and generally that was true. But if he was being honest, he had to admit that situations like these would be slightly easier if she were a he. This chip on her shoulder tough guy act was unnecessary and decidedly unhelpful at the moment.

As they ate, they sat quietly, each lost in their own thoughts. Darkness settled over the camp, and their small fire dwindled. Jack suddenly stood up and broke the silence. "Well, Carter, we might as well bunk down. There's not much else to do until the morning. May as well get some rest." Sam nodded, and followed Jack into their tent. They each unrolled their sleeping bags and climbed in fully clothed.

Jack pulled his sleeping bag over his shoulders and hunched in for warmth. He'd been on some pretty cold camping trips in Minnesota throughout his life, so he wasn't too worried. He knew it was just a matter of distracting his mind from the cold long enough to fall asleep. He began thinking about this year's hockey lineup and building his fantasy team in his head. He'd just finished choosing the left wing position when he noticed a rustling sound. Instantly alert, he focused his senses to hone in on the noise. It seemed to be coming from Carter's side of the tent. He squinted his still dark-adapting eyes at her and noticed that her sleeping bag was shaking. She was shivering intensely in the cold.

"Carter…" Jack drawled out. "Everything okay over there?"

"Yessir!" Sam's shivering reduced to a continuous tremor as she clearly tried to stifle her motions.

"Really?" He was too tired for this.

"Yessir, just fine!" Sam stuttered out through chattering teeth.

"Oh fer cryin' out loud." Jack muttered under his breath. He reached out and grabbed Sam's sleeping bag, tugging her closer to him.

"C'mere, Captain. It is a bit cold in here, even for me. I think we'd do better if we conserve some body heat." Sam nodded, or at least Jack thought she did; it was hard to tell when her whole body was shaking this badly. At her consent, Jack pulled her close, aligning their bodies through their sleeping bags. Her shivering kept him awake for a while, but she must have gradually warmed up because she eventually stopped trembling. He waited until her breathing had evened out into sleep before deciding she was okay and resuming his previous line of thought. Now who would make a good right wing,he wondered as he drifted off to sleep.

—

Jack awoke the next morning to the smell of grass, flowers and sunshine. He lay there for a moment, confused. The last thing he remembered before sleep was something about a snow storm. And hockey. When he slowly opened his eyes, it was to a head full of blond hair just under his nose. He took a deep breath, enjoying the scent. As he lay there, relaxed, he slowly became aware of the fact that his arm was wrapped around Sam, pressing her tightly against his body. He hadn't noticed last night in his slightly annoyed state just how perfectly she fit against him. He continued to lie there, reluctant to move. He was so warm and comfortable, and it just felt… right, holding her in his arms. As he gradually woke up a bit more, he was suddenly reminded that this beautiful woman whose close presence he was thoroughly enjoying was his second-in-command. His peaceful euphoria faded into as he realized that the USAF might not look so kindly on the fact that their huddling together for body warmth had somehow turned into an intimate embrace during the night. He gently pulled his arm from her body and inched away from her. He reminded himself that that's all it had been, after all, just two officers trying to stay warm. And any loss he'd felt after pulling away from her was just about the loss of warmth. Yes, that was it, the cold air of the tent was just making this more difficult. No big deal.

Once he'd managed to gain some distance from Sam, he cleared his throat and called out, "Morning, Carter, rise and shine!" Sam slowly rolled into a sitting position and took in her surroundings, noticing the daylight that streamed through the tent walls. "Wow, I actually slept!"

"Yep." Jack said, avoiding her gaze by busying himself with rolling up his sleeping bag. "Congrats, Carter, you survived your first offworld snow storm."

Sam looked at Jack thoughtfully. "Yeah. I suppose I did." A smile slowly lit her face. "Sir," Sam reached out and put her hand on Jack's arm, stilling his motions. Jack looked up from his nearly rolled sleeping bag to see Sam looking at him intently with her big, blue eyes. "Thank you. For helping me through it." Sam smiled at him and squeezed his arm. At her touch, Jack's heart started racing uncontrollably. He held her gaze, completely transfixed. Sam released his arm and set about packing up her own gear. Jack sat back on his heels, his heart still pounding, his breath caught in his throat. Sam moved about the tent, completely oblivious to her effect on him.

Crap. He was completely screwed.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N** Sorry, this chapter's a bit short, but the conclusion (tomorrow) will be a bit longer :)

"Carter, are you sure you don't want to join us?" Jack called out from the kitchen. Sam pulled back the curtain and sighed. The snow was still coming down pretty hard. She'd joined Janet and Cassie in the morning for breakfast, and had somehow gotten roped into driving Cassie over to Jack's for the afternoon. All of SG1, and especially Sam, had been trying to spend a lot of time lately with the young girl to help her adjust to her new life on Earth. Cassie seemed to be bonding well with Janet, but they figured if they could help keep her busy they'd both help her learn more about her new world and help keep her distracted from the devastating losses she'd experienced on Hanka. So far, their plan seemed to be working, and Cassie had been so excited to have an afternoon with Jack that Sam couldn't bring herself to refuse to drive her. That and the fact that Janet still had an aversion to driving in the snow, even after living in Colorado for over a decade, had her also begging Sam to drive. Her pleading on top of Cassie's had been more than Sam could take, which is how she came to find herself driving way out of her way to stop off at her CO's house on a Saturday afternoon.

"I don't know. I think maybe I should get going, Sir. I had a little trouble with the Volvo on the way over here."

Jack poked his head into the family room. "All the more reason to stay, Carter." He smiled. "C'mon it'll be fun! We're just gonna hang out, have some hot chocolate and play some board games. Besides," he wheedled, "we're only supposed to get a couple more inches; if you wait a bit, it'll stop. This way you'll give the salt trucks time to catch up."

"I don't know…" Sam said, still looking out the window. At that moment a car passing by lost control, swinging around in an arc, narrowly missing the tree at the edge of the neighbors yard. Sam watched as they slowly struggled to reorient themselves before continuing down the icy road. "You know what? That actually sounds good." She smiled and let the curtain drop. Her rear-wheeled drive Volvo had never been very good in the snow anyway.

—

Eight hours and fourteen inches of non-stop snow later, Sam and Jack sat on the couch, watching through the living room windows as the snow continued to fall. Cassie lay asleep next to them, worn out from an afternoon of games and laughter. Sam shook her head. "So much for your theory about two more inches!" The snow drifts were impressive, and to make it worse, snow was still coming down steadily.

"Sorry, Carter." Jack shrugged. "I'm not a weatherman. That's just what they said on TV." He gently eased himself up, trying not to wake Cassie. "Did you at least have a good day?" He looked at her.

Sam smiled up at him. "Yeah, you know what, I did. Even though you guys didn't provide much competition in scrabble."

Jack smiled back. "Yeah, well, you know Cassie's still learning to spell here. You can't expect too much yet."

Sam grinned, "well, that explains _Cassie_…"

Jack just laughed. "I think we should get this little one to the guest room." Jack leaned down and scooped Cassie into his arms. Sam stood up to join them, moving into Jack's personal space to lean over and give Cassie a quick kiss goodnight.

"How about you," Sam looked up, still absently stroking Cassie's hair as she asked gently, "did you have a good day?"

Jack looked down over the sleeping child in his arms and then at Sam. Her cheeks were flushed from the hot cocoa and the heat of the fire, and her eyes were bright. Her face was softened in relaxation and glowed in the firelight. "Yeah," he said softly, communicating the depth of his sincerity with his eyes. "Yeah, I really did."

Sam held his gaze, startled by what she saw there. She'd seen Jack in all sorts of moods - everything from calm and decisive to powerful and fierce. But this was new. Never had she seen him so relaxed, so happy, and so open. It was a whole new side of him, and one that she found she liked quite a lot. Probably more than she should, if she was being honest with herself. Just as she was starting to realize how close she still was to Jack and that she was probably staring, Jack said softly, "Thanks, Carter, for staying." He smiled warmly at her, and Sam felt her insides flip. As Jack turned away to carry Cassie to the guest room, Sam stood rooted to the spot, staring after him, her heart racing.

Oh boy, she was so screwed.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Here it is, the third and final installment. Some time has passed and this chapter is set after the end of season 8. Enjoy and happy holidays, everyone!

"Yes, Daniel, I'll be _fine_" Sam emphasized. "Go. Do your thing. Have fun!" She hung up the phone with an exasperated sigh. One more set of plans gone up in smoke. Yesterday, Mark called to cancel their Christmas plans because of some last minute emergency in his wife's family. She didn't know what; Mark had spared her the details. So she and Daniel had scheduled a Christmas Eve dinner for tonight, and she'd been really looking forward to it. Unfortunately, he'd just remembered he had a booked a flight for this afternoon three months ago to visit some old archaeology friends. How he could have forgotten something like that, Sam wasn't sure. She sighed. Teal'c was off world, so it looked like she would be spending the first Christmas after her father died alone.

Sam looked around her lab, taking in the piles of files to deal with, research papers to read and half-finished projects sitting on her work bench. At least there was plenty here to keep her busy. After surveying the piles, she grabbed a file folder off the nearest stack. She might as well dig in.

Several hours later, her chosen pile was incrementally smaller and her eyes were exponentially blearier. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. Maybe it was time to take a break. She put her head in her hands and wearily contemplated a trip to the mess hall for lunch.

"Sleeping on the job, Carter?" Sam bolted upright in surprise, then looked over to the doorway to see Jack standing there, hands in his pockets, eyes twinkling as he teased her.

"No, Sir! I mean…" Sam shook her head to clear it. "What are you doing here, Sir?"

Jack leaned against the door frame. "What, can't a guy drop in to check on his old teammates?"

Sam smiled. "It's a long way from DC, Sir, just to check on us."

"Oh I don't know, Carter. It seems worth it." Jack held her gaze, and they both stayed there, taking in the sight of the other for a few moments.

Sam turned slightly pink under his scrutiny and turned away, changing the subject. "So, uh, do you have work to do here?"

"Not so much. I was thinking of a little vacation, actually." Jack rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

"Oh?" Sam asked.

"Yep! 'Sides, I got tired of the DC slush. Figured I'd go for a more of a white Christmas this year."

Sam smiled. "Well, Colorado does have that in spades, Sir."

Jack looked at her, his steady gaze growing slightly more intense. "Among other things."

Sam stared at him for a moment, and then blushed again. It almost sounded like he was flirting with her. "So, do you have any plans, Sir?"

Jack stuffed his hands back in his pockets and rocked back on his heels. "Well, actually, I was curious what you might be up to for Christmas, Colonel." He looked around the room as he asked, feigning casualness.

"Have you talked to Daniel and Teal'c?"

"Oh yes," Jack said with light sarcasm, "wouldn't want to forget them."

Sam continued, oblivious. "Unfortunately they're both going to be out of town." Sam gestured to the phone. "Daniel just called to cancel our plans, and Teal'c's off world visiting R'yac." Sam looked down at her desk, disappointed. Clearly this was the end of their dinner plans.

"Well, I guess you and I might just have to make the best of it, then. I'm sure we can cope, somehow." Jack teased. "Whaddaya say, Carter?"

Sam widened her eyes in surprise, then studied his face to see if he was serious. "Um, yeah. Sure. That sounds great, actually."

Jack clapped his hands loudly. "Well, it's all settled. See you at eight? I need a little time to get the food started."

"Okay." Sam smiled. "And thanks, Sir. It'll be nice not to have to spend Christmas alone."

"Yeah, sure." Jack's gaze lingered on hers. "You betchya." Then he turned away, leaving Sam feeling slightly confused as to what exactly had just happened.

* * *

"Ow." Jack dropped the roasting pan with a clatter onto the stovetop. He hadn't had time for the whole turkey thing, but he'd managed to find a decent looking chicken at one of the last places still open on Christmas Eve. That, and a few potatoes, plus a salad, and he figured they were good to go. Oh, and the wine of course. Carter had always been more of a red wine drinker, so he'd picked out a few nice options, thinking she could choose one she liked when she arrived.

He glanced at the clock. Just past eight. She should be here any time now. He looked back out the window, anxiously eyeing the snow. It had started just after he'd left the mountain around lunchtime. The forecast hadn't called for any snow at all, so he'd thought they couldn't possibly get too much. But hours later, the snow was still falling, and showed no signs of easing up. Crap. Why hadn't he invited her for earlier in the afternoon? He had finally worked up the courage to ask her somewhere alone and she'd _actually accepted_ (although, to be fair, he wasn't sure she realized what she was agreeing to). After almost 9 years of waiting for this, to have dinner cancelled by a snow emergency would just be cruel. Not that the Universe had shown much inclination to spare him cruel in the past. He sighed and put the chicken back in the oven, setting it to warm. Nothing he could do now but wait.

* * *

Sam was having trouble focusing on the road despite the inclement weather demanding her attention. Could what she think happened today have actually happened? She kept wavering back and forth, the truth of the matter completely evading her attempts to reason it out. She could swear he'd been sarcastic about Daniel and Teal'c. That he didn't want them there, and hadn't been planning to invite them. But that would mean he only ever intended to invite just _her_. And that was, well, that was just confusing.

She shook her head and tried to pay attention to the road. Her rear wheel drive Volvo was not the most useful car in the snow. She could compensate a lot by applying her driving skills honed by her knowledge of physics and her taste for racing, but at some point, either the tires could grip the ice or they couldn't. Besides, there was no use thinking about it. She was probably reading way too much into their earlier conversation. Probably he had already known about Teal'c and Daniel, and maybe he even had other people coming over for dinner. It probably wasn't a personal invitation for her. Could it have been?

The snow had reached almost white-out conditions, drastically slowing her travel time; unfortunately, she had plenty of time to think. By the time she was within a few miles of Jack's, she'd worked herself back into believing he had actually asked her out. Suddenly, she felt sure of it. In her eagerness to arrive, she accelerated ever so slightly too quickly through a turn. Her wheels started spinning futilely on ice and she lost control of the Volvo. Her car spun out of the turn and swung around, sliding sideways into a ditch, and coming to rest only as it crunched loudly into a tree.

For a moment, Sam sat there, stunned from the crash. She then recovered herself enough to look back and assess the damage. Luckily, her car had hit the tree on her rear passenger side. And also luckily, the fuel tank was on the other side, although the passenger side door had fared less well; it was completely smashed in. Broken glass filled the back seat, and the door bent awkwardly into the car. Sam reached into her pocket for her cell phone, only to discover that in her distraction about dinner, she must have left it at work. Sam dropped her head to the steering wheel in dismay. Her car was probably totaled. And worse, her plans for the evening were probably canceled. What she really should do now is find some help, call the police, file a report, wait for the car to be towed and somehow find a ride home. Disappointment flooded through her in waves. She was just starting to feel so sure about what was waiting for her at Jack's; it felt like cruel punishment to have her hopes snatched away at the last moment. She stayed there for several minutes, taking deep, panicky breaths, trying not to cry.

After a few moments, she calmed herself and looked around again. Outside, the street lamps were blinking yellow and there was not a soul in sight. Sam pushed open her door and climbed out into the snow, surveying her car. It was in pretty bad shape; she wouldn't be driving it out of this ditch. As she stood there, contemplating her choices, she realized that she was actually closest to Jack's. She felt a small bit of hope prick at the back of her consciousness. Maybe she could make this work after all. With a renewed sense of determination, Sam worked her way over to the trunk and managed to force it open, despite it being a bit bent on one side. She leaned down and pulled out the backpack she always kept in the car for emergencies. It had flares, a swiss army knife, a first aid kit, a change of clothes, a small thermal blanket and a few other useful odds and ends.

She pulled out a flashlight and compass, swung the backpack over her shoulders, and set off down the road. Come hell or high water, she was going to make that dinner.

* * *

Jack looked at the clock for the hundredth time that evening. It was almost ten at this point; she wasn't coming. He got up off the couch, and headed into the kitchen. He turned the oven off, pulled the now-dry chicken out of the oven and began to wrap up the food. He tried not to worry; after all, Carter could handle herself in the snow. A quick call to her cell had only gotten him voicemail, but that didn't necessarily mean anything; she was notorious for forgetting to bring it with her. Most likely she'd made it part way and turned back when the roads proved treacherous. If she even left at all. Maybe she'd misunderstood his invitation and thought he was having some kind of neighborhood Christmas party or something. If so, and if she decided not to show, she wouldn't necessarily think to call him and tell him of her change in plans.

As he was tearing off a strip of aluminum foil to wrap up the chicken with, he heard the doorbell ring. He froze where he was was, his heart in his throat, his hands and foil poised over the poultry. It couldn't be, could it? His heart began racing. He set the foil down and hurried over to the front door, pulling it open eagerly and letting in a blast of cold air. There, wrapped in a layer of ice, eyebrows literally frosted over, stood one Samantha Carter. As the door opened, a full blown smile lit her face. "I made it! I hope I'm not too late."

Jack stood there a moment, staring at her in amazement, before he came to his senses and quickly pulled her inside. "Carter! Thank God you're okay!" He pulled her into a hug, getting himself covered in snow in the process.

"Did your other guests go home already?" Sam's question was muffled by Jack's shoulder.

Jack pulled back enough to meet her eyes, his hands grasping her upper arms. "What other guests?" He looked at her, confused.

Sam's full-beam smile returned and then faded into something softer, shyer. "Oh. I wasn't sure."

Jack brought his hand up to Sam's face, caressing her cheek with his thumb. "Sam, there never was anyone else."

Sam ducked her head as her shy smile widened. She brought her arms up around Jack, and leaned her head against his chest. Jack folded her into his arms and just stood there, holding her.

After a few moments, he became aware that she had started both dripping melted ice and shivering. He rubbed her arms. "How about we get you warmed up?" Jack began working Sam's wet coat off her shoulders.

Sam's face lifted in a slow, seductive smile. "Sounds good to me." She leaned up and kissed Jack gently on the lips.

Jack wrapped his right arm around Sam's waist, and reached his left arm up, threaded his fingers through the the still icy hair at the nape of her neck. He pulled her in tightly, deepening the kiss.

After a few moments, Jack pulled back and rested his forehead on Sam's. "I'd been thinking we'd start with hot chocolate, Sam, but your way's better." Jack smiled at her fondly and tugged her hand, pulling her further into the house. "You always were the one with the brilliant ideas."

Sam grinned and followed him inside.

.fin.


End file.
